There are no words to express the loss all of us who knew Nicky Da B are feeling right now. Thank you all for the kind messages and thoughts. Though his death is tragic he would love nothing more than to be remembered for having brought smiles and joy to people he worked with, performed for and called his friends. He was well loved and one of the brightest artists I've ever known. Keep his family in your thoughts as we make plans to honor his life and make sure his legacy is meaningful and fitting for a talent like his. Thank you all so much. I loved that kid, and the world is a little darker without him.

If you noticed back in September that Kitty Pryde made a facebook status saying, "just finished my christmas song for sufjan stevens....................(:" and you were like, "WTF does that sound like?!" now you can find out! Sufjan's free Christmas rap mixtape, Chopped and Scrooged (yeah, we did just say "Sufjan's free Christmas rap mixtape"), is out now and can be downloaded above or streamed below. Other contributors to the album include the now-defunctDas Racist, Busdriver, Nicky Da B, Son Lux, John Dietrich (of Deerhoof), Fol Chen, and more.

This release is in addition to Sufjan's massive Christmas box set which is out now. And as mentioned he brings his Christmas tour to NYC on December 21 and 22 at Bowery Ballroom. Tickets for both shows go on sale Wednesday, December 19 at noon.

NYC!!!! You are true blue!!!! Thank you for being so kind to us. Couldn't help those tears the last two songs. Hearts exploding!!!!! - @Tilly And The Wall's Twitter.

Tilly & The Wall at Bowery Ballroom, 10/13/2012

Tilly and the Wall clearly had a great time during their stay in NYC. The tap-dancing Nebraskans were joined by the booty-clappin' Nicky Da B and Brooklynites Starlight Girls at their October 13 show at Bowery Ballroom, as part of their US tour in support of their new LP Heavy Mood. If the Tilly/Nicky combo seems strange on paper, the crowd didn't seem to notice, going equally mental for both.

The Tilly and the Wall's trek shuffles on, playing Raleigh, NC on Tuesday (10/16) and wrapping up in their hometown of Omaha on November 21. More pictures, as well as video, from Bowery Ballroom are below.

Just as doors opened at 25 Franklin, a dark, ominous cloud rolled over Greenpoint like a barge. Despite threats of tornadoes in the metropolitan area polluting social media outlets all day, a ton of people showed up for the third Vans House Party on July 26th featuring King Khan & The Shrines, Nicky Da B and The Everymen. It was shocking, really. Huddled under umbrellas or not (apparently having come to terms with the wetness), BK kids weren't gonna let a little lightning get in the way of their booty shaking-- or the free booze.

After one really epic downpour, the weather turned to a light sprinkle that, when compared to the heat, was actually quite refreshing. Inside, however, the combination of hundreds of damp people and relatively still air turned the place into a sauna-- the perfect setting for a dirty, ass shakin' dance party. No one even had to try for an excuse to take off their clothes. The Everymen opened, warming up the crowd with their energetic rock n roll. The seven piece outfit from New Jersey, reminiscent of the New Pornographers in structure, took command of the stage and the crowd was pretty into it considering that most of them were waiting for King Khan.

Nicky Da B took stage next and gave everyone what they were waiting for-- some serious ass shaking inspiration. I believe there is something comforting in having the desire to dance and going to a place where no matter how hard you try, one can never be the most risque or ridiculous person in the joint. What freedom! No one is looking... well maybe they are but they're looking in the direction of a shared, sweaty, collective experience where everyone goes home satisfied even if they don't get laid. But as the crowd got closer together, hair sticking to faces, glitter and neon flying about and SO MUCH ass in the air-- getting laid was more likely than not.

Finally, King Khan and the Shrines went on and energy sort of switched from sex to light hearted anarchy. You know, the kind of dancing where you accept the fact that you may get a black eye. What other kind of dancing is there, really? So many crowd surfers kept security occupied as King Khan screeched and wailed in front of a full backing band with horns and all manner of instruments. Strongly rooted funk but with a Bollywood flair thrown in, the man gives the late James Brown a serious run for his money. King Khan, with his feather headpiece, flamboyant dress and ironic, funny lyrics, doesn't take himself too seriously. The loose hilarity of it all creates a safe haven for humans to forget if you're a boy or a girl or you have to work in the morning and just GET DOWN.

NYC rapper Le1f, who just played Warm Up last Saturday (7/21), has another local show TONIGHT (7/26) at The Hester (835 6th Ave at 29th St) with DJ Rusty Lazer and DJ sets by Zomby and Lemonade and a "special surprise guest." The show is totally free and there's free food and drinks too. RSVP to RSVP@HESTERSTREETFAIR.COM. Doors are at 6 PM and the show runs through 10 PM.

RSVP is open for the next free House of Vans show, which is this Thursday (7/26) with King Khan & the Shrines, Nicky Da B, and The Everymen.

For King Khan, the House of Vans show is part of a short east coast run that he kicked off yesterday, and which hits Asbury Park, NJ for a show at Asbury Lanes TONIGHT (7/24). Tickets for tonight's show are available. As mentioned, after House of Vans, he'll play another NYC show at Bowery Ballroom on Friday (7/27) with Hector's Pets and M. Lamar. Tickets for Friday's show are still available too.

The full House of Vans 2012 free show schedule is up. The Greenpoint/Williamsburg space has already housed The Rapture and Tanlines this year, and we knew about the 7/12 show with H20, 7 Seconds and Tournament, but here's the rest of the summer's line-up, brought to you by the folks at FYF and the sneaker people:

One thing you notice not on this list is Quicksand which was one of the big rumors of this year's VANS schedule. That either means that Quicksand will play somewhere else, or like the upcoming free Dum Dum Girls/Widowspeak show, it won't be part of this series of "House Parties."

The July 26 show is one of many local dates from NJ's Everymen who are also playing Pianos this Friday, July 6 as part of the CBGB Festival. (Advance tickets are on sale.) After the House of Vans show, the band will go on a short East Coast tour while putting the finishing touches on their new album New Jersey Hardcore which will come out in October on Killing Horse Records. All Everymen dates are below.

POP Montreal is returning to Montreal this year from September 19 - 23. The initial lineup was revealed and it includes Grizzly Bear, Gang Gang Dance, David Byrne, Tim Hecker, Julia Holter, I Break Horses, Hot Snakes, Dirty Three, Mr. Muthafuckin' eXquire, Cate Le Bon, Bertrand Burgulat (!), and more. The full initial lineup is listed below and many more announcements to come. Early Bird tickets are on sale until June 30, when regular sale begins.

Diplo released the "Express Yourself" 7" this month, the single for that track from his EP of the same name. You've already seen the video for that song, which features bounce artist Nicky Da B, and below we're offering a stream of the single's b-side, "Move Around" (featuring Elephant Man and GTA). That's the cover art for the 7" above. Pick up a copy on green vinyl.

Although the Full Flex Express tour doesn't come to the US, Diplo, Skrillex, and Pretty Lights will all be in NYC later this summer for Electric Zoo, which returns to Randall's Island from August 31-September 1. Tickets are on sale now. The full lineup is listed below. Skrillex will also be in the NYC area for Bamboozle this weekend.

Speaking of electronic dance festivals in New York, the Electric Daisy Carnival will occur at MetLife Stadium this weekend from May 18-20. The lineup includes MSTRKRFT, Richie Hawtin, Fatboy Slim, Bassnectar, and others. Tickets are available. Full lineup below.

In more related news, the touring Identity Festival, whose lineup was a bit better last year but certainly bigger this year since it sold out in less than 24 hours, returns to NY on July 28 at Jones Beach. Artists playing include Datsik, Eric Prydz, Nero, and more. Full lineup below.

New Orleans bounce artist Nicky Da B released his debut album, Please Don't Forget Da B last year. The album is driven by similar rapid fire vocal repetition to other artists in the genre like Big Freedia, who he opened for at Brooklyn Bowl in January. You can stream the entire album at the bottom of this post.

Big Freedia spent last night (1/25) teaching the US how to bounce at home as part of a live appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live. The diva performed "Excuse" and "Na Who Mad" from her recent EP, but unfortunately did not perform the new single "Booty-Whop" which was released this week via iTunes. Check out video of the New Orleans bounce phenom below, and if you're in LA then head to Bootleg Bar TONIGHT (1/26) to catch the booty-clapping in the flesh.

Big Freedia headlined Brooklyn Bowl on January 21, bringing her patented bounce to the venue along with support from Nicky Da B and Rusty Lazer. Pictures from the appearance adorn this post too. More below...